In proposing a council-manager structure, the Charter Commission misidentifies the problem Amherst faces.
We do not suffer from incompetent or corrupt management, and we are unlikely to do so under any of the forms of government under consideration.
What we do suffer from is the lack of political leadership, leadership that is essential to articulating the central issues the community faces.
Consider the recent town election and the intense debates over school building policies. Underlying the immediate issues are long-standing problems of racial and economic divisions — problems faced by all communities in America. Lots of voices were heard in the campaigns for School Committee and school buildings.
Conspicuously absent, however, was the voice of the town manager. And that is by design: contributing to, let alone shaping such important debates, is simply not part of the job or the skill set of a good manager.
A mayor, however, would be expected to play a central role in such debates. And given the divisions in the community, and the ability of small groups in Town Meeting and elsewhere to set the agenda, I believe we desperately need the authoritative voice of an accountable elected official to help steer us through the rough times ahead, to define issues for debate, to construct winning coalitions of interested voters. It follows that a mayor should also play a leading role on a future School Committee; neither a manager, nor a mayor-less council, could play that role.
Let’s confront openly the political divisions in town rather than burying them in a futile quest for a nonpolitical, administrative form of government.
Bob Rakoff
Amherst
